Appraisal Route and Connection Checklist
HTML edition updated 9 September 2026. This is an educational planning aid, not an official application form or individual advice.
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Use brief, non-identifiable notes only. Do not enter patient, colleague, employer-confidential, legal-case or personal financial details. Nothing entered here is sent to the publication or saved automatically. Closing or reloading the page clears entries. Use a trusted device and print only material you can store safely.
Purpose and boundaries
Use this workbook when starting work, changing employer, adding another role or discovering uncertainty about who oversees your appraisal and revalidation. It helps you prepare questions for the proper team. It cannot determine a prescribed connection from a job title or replace the GMC connection tool.
Use neutral planning notes. Do not record names, GMC numbers, identifiable cases, health details, confidential employer material or private document links here. The website is not an approved appraisal record. Entries in the webpage stay in the open page and are not saved automatically. Store completed downloads securely and transfer appropriate information to your approved system.
Worked example: a fictional planning situation
A doctor moves from a long hospital post to several shorter appointments. The former appraisal login still works, but the doctor does not treat continued access as evidence that the old connection remains correct. They check the current GMC tool, ask the relevant organisations to confirm responsibility, agree how previous appraisal records can be transferred and keep a neutral action list. The connection, the next meeting and access to evidence are three separate matters to resolve.
1. Describe the change
Start with the type of work and the transition. Include concurrent medical roles and periods without an employer. Use neutral role labels here; the actual organisational and personal details belong in your approved records. A role map helps identify the right questions without inviting an unsupported connection decision.
2. Check the connection
Use the current GMC connection tool and follow its instructions. Confirm the result with the appropriate organisation or the GMC where uncertain. A familiar employer, a preferred appraiser or access to a platform is not enough to establish the connection. Record that confirmation exists without copying private correspondence.
3. Confirm the local system
Ask which appraisal platform and process apply, who arranges the appraiser and what preparation timetable is expected. Hospital SAS and LED doctors should not assume that a GP or formal-training system is the right route. Confirm accessibility adjustments and assistance before the submission becomes urgent.
4. Maintain continuity
Before leaving a post, agree appropriate access to your appraisal summary, PDP and supporting information. Follow organisational permission and retention rules. Do not copy clinical records or confidential employer files into a personal archive merely because access may end. A reference and transfer arrangement may be more appropriate.
5. If there is no connection
Doctors without a responsible officer or suitable person have additional GMC requirements. These include defined appraiser criteria, annual returns and the revalidation assessment process. Read the current guidance and the actual notices; do not assume that buying an appraisal alone completes the route.
6. Close the uncertainty
Separate confirmed facts from outstanding actions. Keep evidence of the agreed arrangement in the appropriate record and check GMC Online details where required. If responsibility remains disputed, seek clarification promptly. A calendar reminder is helpful only when there is an identified action and route for resolution.
Review the plan before using it
Check that the notes describe what is known, what remains uncertain and what someone still needs to agree. A completed field does not prove approval, competence or revalidation readiness. Keep official correspondence and actual deadlines separate from illustrative planning dates. Seek appropriate advice where an individual decision or a licence may be affected.
Sources and related learning
Editorial source review: 9 September 2026. The links below are primary sources; publication dates vary. Current official guidance and approved local arrangements take priority. This is independent education, not a GMC-endorsed form or individual advice.